HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Matthew Piers Watt Boulton (22 September 1820 – 30 June 1894), also published under the
pseudonym A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name (orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individua ...
M. P. W. Bolton, was a British
classicist Classics or classical studies is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, classics traditionally refers to the study of Classical Greek and Roman literature and their related original languages, Ancient Greek and Latin. Classics ...
, elected member of the UK's
Metaphysical Society The Metaphysical Society was a famous British debating society, founded in 1869 by James Knowles, who acted as Secretary. Membership was by invitation only, and was exclusively male. Many of its members were prominent clergymen, philosophers, and ...
, an amateur scientist and an
inventor An invention is a unique or novel device, method, composition, idea or process. An invention may be an improvement upon a machine, product, or process for increasing efficiency or lowering cost. It may also be an entirely new concept. If an ...
, best known for his invention of the
aileron An aileron (French for "little wing" or "fin") is a hinged flight control surface usually forming part of the trailing edge of each wing of a fixed-wing aircraft. Ailerons are used in pairs to control the aircraft in roll (or movement around ...
, a primary aeronautical flight control device. He patented the aileron in 1868, some 36 years before it was first employed in manned flight by
Robert Esnault-Pelterie Robert Albert Charles Esnault-Pelterie (8 November 1881 – 6 December 1957) was a French aircraft designer and spaceflight theorist. He is referred to as being one of the founders of modern rocketry and astronautics, along with the Russian Kons ...
in 1904. Boulton was the son of
Matthew Robinson Boulton Matthew Robinson Boulton (8 August 1770 – 16 May 1842) was an English manufacturer, a pioneer of management, the son of Matthew Boulton and the father of Matthew Piers Watt Boulton, who first patented the aileron. He was responsible with Ja ...
, and as well the grandson of
Matthew Boulton Matthew Boulton (; 3 September 172817 August 1809) was an English manufacturer and business partner of Scottish engineer James Watt. In the final quarter of the 18th century, the partnership installed hundreds of Boulton & Watt steam engine ...
, who founded the
Soho Manufactory The Soho Manufactory () was an early factory which pioneered mass production on the assembly line principle, in Soho, Birmingham, England, at the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. It operated from 1766–1848 and was demolished in 1853. Be ...
and the
Soho Mint Soho Mint was created by Matthew Boulton in 1788 in his Soho Manufactory () in Handsworth, West Midlands, England. A mint was erected at the manufactory containing eight machines, to his own patent design, driven by steam engine, each capable of ...
. His grandfather also co-founded the
Soho Foundry Soho Foundry is a factory created in 1775 by Matthew Boulton and James Watt and their sons Matthew Robinson Boulton and James Watt Jr. at Smethwick, West Midlands, England (), for the manufacture of steam engines. Now owned by Avery Weigh-Tr ...
with
James Watt James Watt (; 30 January 1736 (19 January 1736 OS) – 25 August 1819) was a Scottish inventor, mechanical engineer, and chemist who improved on Thomas Newcomen's 1712 Newcomen steam engine with his Watt steam engine in 1776, which was fun ...
, which employed
steam engine A steam engine is a heat engine that performs mechanical work using steam as its working fluid. The steam engine uses the force produced by steam pressure to push a piston back and forth inside a cylinder. This pushing force can be trans ...
s of the latter's design. Born into a family of significant wealth and means, M. P. W. was broadly educated in the classics, philosophy and sciences, subsequently becoming well versed in steam engine design, and then transferring his interest to the basic conceptual designs of
jet propulsion Jet propulsion is the propulsion of an object in one direction, produced by ejecting a jet of fluid in the opposite direction. By Newton's third law, the moving body is propelled in the opposite direction to the jet. Reaction engines operating o ...
and
rocket motor A rocket engine uses stored rocket propellants as the reaction mass for forming a high-speed propulsive jet of fluid, usually high-temperature gas. Rocket engines are reaction engines, producing thrust by ejecting mass rearward, in accordance ...
s. However, whatever personal interest he held in the foundry's operation and the coinage mint he inherited from his father soon waned, and he subsequently closed and sold the mint facility in 1850. Thereafter he conducted numerous studies, wrote a wide variety of papers and earned a number of
patent A patent is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the legal right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention for a limited period of time in exchange for publishing an enabling disclosure of the invention."A p ...
s, including for an aileron flight control system, various types of motive power engines and their components such as
propeller A propeller (colloquially often called a screw if on a ship or an airscrew if on an aircraft) is a device with a rotating hub and radiating blades that are set at a pitch to form a helical spiral which, when rotated, exerts linear thrust upon ...
s and pumps, plus other works on solar heat,
photography Photography is the art, application, and practice of creating durable images by recording light, either electronically by means of an image sensor, or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film. It is employed ...
and more. Despite being married twice and raising a large family, Boulton was described as reclusive by those who knew him. He was one of only five members of the Metaphysical Society who did not appear in the British ''
Dictionary of National Biography The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...
''. His ''
Times Time is the continued sequence of existence and events, and a fundamental quantity of measuring systems. Time or times may also refer to: Temporal measurement * Time in physics, defined by its measurement * Time standard, civil time specific ...
'' obituary described him as "a gifted member of a gifted family ...
ith The Ith () is a ridge in Germany's Central Uplands which is up to 439 m high. It lies about 40 km southwest of Hanover and, at 22 kilometres, is the longest line of crags in North Germany. Geography Location The Ith is immediatel ...
wide knowledge and sterling qualities"; however, he appears to have never sought notability nor gained it in his lifetime, and his accomplishments are known chiefly through his patents and published writings.


Early life

Boulton was born 22 September 1820 at Mose Old Norton,
Staffordshire Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation Staffs.) is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. It borders Cheshire to the northwest, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, Warwickshire to the southeast, the West Midlands Cou ...
, England, to
Matthew Robinson Boulton Matthew Robinson Boulton (8 August 1770 – 16 May 1842) was an English manufacturer, a pioneer of management, the son of Matthew Boulton and the father of Matthew Piers Watt Boulton, who first patented the aileron. He was responsible with Ja ...
(8 August 1770 – 16 May 1842) and Mary Anne Wilkinson (27 November 1795 – 7 June 1829). He was baptized at St. Mary's Church, Handsworth, Staffordshire on 9 November 1820. M. P. W.'s ancestors can be traced back to John Bolton (his surname missing the ''u'', which was included one or two generations later) of Lichfield, Staffordshire, who married (the later-to-be wealthy) Elizabeth, daughter of Matthew Dyott of Stichbrooke, Staffordshire in the late 15th century. John Bolton is believed descended from, possibly a grandson of Robert Bolton (1572 – 19 December 1631), rector of Broughton, Northamptonshire in 1609 until his death. M. P. W. Boulton's immediate family included two younger brothers (both whom survived childhood but died unmarried) as well as three sisters and eight cousins. His brother-in-law,
James Patrick Muirhead James Patrick Muirhead FRSE (26 July 1813 – 15 October 1898) was a Scottish advocate and author, best known as the biographer of James Watt. Life Born at The Grove, Hamilton, Lanarkshire, he was son of Lockhart Muirhead; George Muirhead was hi ...
(1813–1890, husband to Boulton's elder sister Katharine Elizabeth, 1816–1890), would become James Watt's biographer. Boulton's grandfather
Matthew Boulton Matthew Boulton (; 3 September 172817 August 1809) was an English manufacturer and business partner of Scottish engineer James Watt. In the final quarter of the 18th century, the partnership installed hundreds of Boulton & Watt steam engine ...
and
James Watt James Watt (; 30 January 1736 (19 January 1736 OS) – 25 August 1819) was a Scottish inventor, mechanical engineer, and chemist who improved on Thomas Newcomen's 1712 Newcomen steam engine with his Watt steam engine in 1776, which was fun ...
had perfected the
steam engine A steam engine is a heat engine that performs mechanical work using steam as its working fluid. The steam engine uses the force produced by steam pressure to push a piston back and forth inside a cylinder. This pushing force can be trans ...
during the 1770s which soon set off the
Industrial Revolution The Industrial Revolution was the transition to new manufacturing processes in Great Britain, continental Europe, and the United States, that occurred during the period from around 1760 to about 1820–1840. This transition included going f ...
in England, and later the rest of the world. Matthew Piers Watt was named after his grandfather as well as his grandfather's close business partner, James Watt who had jointly created the
Soho Foundry Soho Foundry is a factory created in 1775 by Matthew Boulton and James Watt and their sons Matthew Robinson Boulton and James Watt Jr. at Smethwick, West Midlands, England (), for the manufacture of steam engines. Now owned by Avery Weigh-Tr ...
which employed their engines. Boulton's second given name also reflected the family of his great-grandmother, the Piers of
Chester Chester is a cathedral city and the county town of Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Dee, close to the English–Welsh border. With a population of 79,645 in 2011,"2011 Census results: People and Population Profile: Chester Loca ...
, Bull Ring, Birmingham. In 1815–1816 M. P. W.'s father,
Matthew Robinson Boulton Matthew Robinson Boulton (8 August 1770 – 16 May 1842) was an English manufacturer, a pioneer of management, the son of Matthew Boulton and the father of Matthew Piers Watt Boulton, who first patented the aileron. He was responsible with Ja ...
, bought the
Great Tew Great Tew is an English village and civil parish in Oxfordshire, about north-east of Chipping Norton and south-west of Banbury. The 2011 Census gave a parish population of 156. This qualifies it for an annual parish meeting, not a monthly p ...
Estate and manor in the civil parish of Cotswold Hills in Oxfordshire. In 1825 he added a
Gothic Revival Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...
library to the east end of the manor house, and by the middle of the 19th century the Boulton family had a large
Tudor style Tudor Revival architecture (also known as mock Tudor in the UK) first manifested itself in domestic architecture in the United Kingdom in the latter half of the 19th century. Based on revival of aspects that were perceived as Tudor architecture ...
section designed by F.S. Waller added to the west end. The Great Tew Estate would remain with Boulton's immediate family until M. P. W.'s son Matthew Ernest Boulton died without heirs in 1914, after which it was eventually inherited by a more distant relative. Boulton's early education included instruction at a private school in
Royal Leamington Spa Royal Leamington Spa, commonly known as Leamington Spa or simply Leamington (), is a spa town and civil parish in Warwickshire, England. Originally a small village called Leamington Priors, it grew into a spa town in the 18th century following ...
(simply called Leamington) run by Reverend Atwood, the Vicar of
Kenilworth Kenilworth ( ) is a market town and Civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Warwick (district), Warwick District in Warwickshire, England, south-west of Coventry, north of Warwick and north-west of London. It lies on Finham Brook, a ...
. There were but six boys in this school with a good measure of religious instruction. He attended with his younger brother Hugh William (1821–1847) who would die at age 26, and with Francis Galton, later
Sir Francis Galton Sir Francis Galton, FRS FRAI (; 16 February 1822 – 17 January 1911), was an English Victorian era polymath: a statistician, sociologist, psychologist, anthropologist, tropical explorer, geographer, inventor, meteorologist, proto- ...
, the brilliant English polymath who became his friend and remained so through Cambridge. Boulton studied the classics, philosophy and sciences at
Eton Eton most commonly refers to Eton College, a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. Eton may also refer to: Places *Eton, Berkshire, a town in Berkshire, England * Eton, Georgia, a town in the United States * Éton, a commune in the Meuse dep ...
. In one letter written from Eton with "boyish enthusiasm", Boulton described life at his boarding school: In October 1838 Boulton entered
Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by Henry VIII, King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any college at either Cambridge ...
where he undertook studies of mathematics, logic and the classics. His first tutor in Cambridge was the English mathematician George Peacock (then Cambridge's Lowndean Professor of Astronomy and a friend of
Charles Babbage Charles Babbage (; 26 December 1791 – 18 October 1871) was an English polymath. A mathematician, philosopher, inventor and mechanical engineer, Babbage originated the concept of a digital programmable computer. Babbage is considered ...
). Among Boulton's earliest accomplishments was earning the Eton Prize in February 1839 for his essay, The Decline and Fall of the Persian Empire, and an award for his collection of witty
epigram An epigram is a brief, interesting, memorable, and sometimes surprising or satirical statement. The word is derived from the Greek "inscription" from "to write on, to inscribe", and the literary device has been employed for over two mille ...
s at
Cambridge University , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...
in 1841. He also won two of Cambridge's Sir William Browne Medals for Latin and Greek poetry. Dr. Chris Upton of Birmhingham's Newman University wrote on Boulton's 1841 Latin poem ''Vehicula vi vaporis impulsa'', roughly meaning "Vehicles driven by the power of steam". Describing Boulton's poem in an English rendering, Upton wrote: However even as a young man Boulton earned a reputation for avoiding the notice of his peers as he had "...no wish to attract the attention of his contemporaries", eventually eschewing university scholarships and other limelight. Boulton showed a "compete indifference to all the rewards and distinctions attached to the manifestations of them", as written by his second Cambridge tutor, Reverend John Moore Heath (1808–1882), in a letter to the student's father and sponsor. Boulton's refusal to compete for Trinity and other university scholarships was based on his belief that the competitions did "more harm than good", and in any event their awards were of far greater value to the poor students of the university. Boulton graduated from Cambridge with his B.A. in 1845.


Family life

Boulton was married twice; his first marriage on 27 November 1845 was to Frances Eliza Cartwright (b.
Northamptonshire Northamptonshire (; abbreviated Northants.) is a county in the East Midlands of England. In 2015, it had a population of 723,000. The county is administered by two unitary authorities: North Northamptonshire and West Northamptonshire. It is ...
1817 – d.
Great Malvern Great Malvern is an area of the spa town of Malvern, Worcestershire, England. It lies at the foot of the Malvern Hills, a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, on the eastern flanks of the Worcestershire Beacon and North Hill, and i ...
,
Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a county in the West Midlands of England. The area that is now Worcestershire was absorbed into the unified Kingdom of England in 927, at which time it was constituted as a county (see His ...
1864), the daughter of Lieutenant-Colonel
William Ralph Cartwright William Ralph Cartwright (30 March 1771 – 4 January 1847) was an English landowner and Tory politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1797 and 1846. Life Cartwright was the son of Thomas Cartwright of Aynhoe Park and his wife Mary Ca ...
and his second wife Julia Frances Aubrey. Her father served as a
Tory A Tory () is a person who holds a political philosophy known as Toryism, based on a British version of traditionalism and conservatism, which upholds the supremacy of social order as it has evolved in the English culture throughout history. Th ...
politician and sat in the
British House of Commons The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the upper house, the House of Lords, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. The House of Commons is an elected body consisting of 650 mem ...
between 1797 and 1846. Boulton's first marriage produced two daughters, Marianne Aubrey (sometimes Mary Anne Audrey, b. London, 1854–1934) and Ethel Julia (b. Tew, 1858–1924). After selling
Soho House Soho House is a museum run by Birmingham Museums Trust, celebrating Matthew Boulton's life, his partnership with James Watt, his membership of the Lunar Society of Birmingham and his contribution to the Midlands Enlightenment and the Ind ...
and his father's mint facility in 1850, Boulton retired to his family's manor and estate of
Great Tew Great Tew is an English village and civil parish in Oxfordshire, about north-east of Chipping Norton and south-west of Banbury. The 2011 Census gave a parish population of 156. This qualifies it for an annual parish meeting, not a monthly p ...
, in the
Oxfordshire Oxfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the north west of South East England. It is a mainly rural county, with its largest settlement being the city of Oxford. The county is a centre of research and development, primarily ...
village of the same name, and also living in London. An 1851 census listed him at the former as a landed proprietor, along with a nephew, Thomas Robert Cartwright (age 20), and nine servants. Following the death of his first wife Frances Eliza in 1864, Boulton remarried with Pauline Gleissberg (b. Germany, 1837–1911), daughter of Ernst Gleissberg, dean of the city of Cannstatt in the German kingdom of
Württemberg Württemberg ( ; ) is a historical German territory roughly corresponding to the cultural and linguistic region of Swabia. The main town of the region is Stuttgart. Together with Baden and Hohenzollern, two other historical territories, Würt ...
. Together they had four children: Clara Gertrude (later to be ''Lady of the Manor of Great Tew'', b. Knightsbridge, 1868–1954), his first son Matthew Ernest Kensington (b. Paddington, 1870–1914), Pauline Margaret (b. Switzerland, 1872–1918) and Frederick Montagu (b. Great Tew, 1875–1912).


Later years: career, publications and scientific works

Boulton became a
Justice of the Peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...
, Deputy Lieutenant, and
High Sheriff of Oxfordshire The High Sheriff of Oxfordshire, in common with other counties, was originally the King's representative on taxation upholding the law in Saxon times. The word Sheriff evolved from 'shire-reeve'. The title of High Sheriff is therefore much older ...
before the age of 30. He was part of the
landed gentry The landed gentry, or the ''gentry'', is a largely historical British social class of landowners who could live entirely from rental income, or at least had a country estate. While distinct from, and socially below, the British peerage, th ...
due to his family's holdings at Tew Park, and the Great Haseley Court estate and manor that M. P. W. later purchased in Tetworth,
Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean. The county town is the city of Gl ...
in 1880. Boulton improved the Tew estate by enlarging its grand three-story manor house, adding another garden and refining its grove. With the death of his father in 1848, he inherited the large fortune created by both his father's and grandfather's enterprises, permitting him, his large household and his relatives a comfortable life. Up to 11 servants were employed to administer to his manor and estate. Boulton's inheritance made him wealthy, but he had little desire to continue his family's businesses which he subsequently closed, disposing of their assets by sale. His financial independence allowed him to pursue studies and writings as a philosopher-scientist on a wide variety of subjects. Among them were at least two pamphlets in the early 1860s refuting the authenticity of purported 18th-century photographs; verse translations of the classics including
Homer Homer (; grc, Ὅμηρος , ''Hómēros'') (born ) was a Greek poet who is credited as the author of the ''Iliad'' and the ''Odyssey'', two epic poems that are foundational works of ancient Greek literature. Homer is considered one of the ...
's ''
Iliad The ''Iliad'' (; grc, Ἰλιάς, Iliás, ; "a poem about Ilium") is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is one of the oldest extant works of literature still widely read by modern audiences. As with the ''Odysse ...
'',
Virgil Publius Vergilius Maro (; traditional dates 15 October 7021 September 19 BC), usually called Virgil or Vergil ( ) in English, was an ancient Roman poet of the Augustan period. He composed three of the most famous poems in Latin literature: t ...
's '' Æneid'' and other classical works during the mid-1870s; papers on
metaphysics Metaphysics is the branch of philosophy that studies the fundamental nature of reality, the first principles of being, identity and change, space and time, causality, necessity, and possibility. It includes questions about the nature of conscio ...
from the late 1870s, and as well two pamphlets on
solar energy Solar energy is radiant light and heat from the Sun that is harnessed using a range of technologies such as solar power to generate electricity, solar thermal energy (including solar water heating), and solar architecture. It is an essenti ...
written in the early 1890s. He earned over a dozen patents for multiple inventions, many of them for aircraft propulsion systems. At least one patent was assigned to
George Westinghouse George Westinghouse Jr. (October 6, 1846 – March 12, 1914) was an American entrepreneur and engineer based in Pennsylvania who created the railway air brake and was a pioneer of the electrical industry, receiving his first patent at the age of ...
, Jr, the American industrial tycoon. His financial independence allowed him not to pursue any particular career aggressively. He was described as reclusive to the point that his "wide knowledge and sterling qualities were known only to a few". While others of wealth and ability often sought greater wealth, notability and positions of power, Boulton was to eventually become notable for being ''unnotable''. In his lifetime he had "...no wish to attract the attention of his contemporaries".
Kenyon College Kenyon College is a private liberal arts college in Gambier, Ohio. It was founded in 1824 by Philander Chase. Kenyon College is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. Kenyon has 1,708 undergraduates enrolled. Its 1,000-acre campus is se ...
Professor of History Bruce Kinzer's 2009 biographic sketch of Boulton, possibly the only one ever published, posited that "Boulton has not posthumously gained the recognition he never sought during his lifetime." The philosopher-scientist-inventor's non-notability extended to missing entries in Boase's ''Modern English Biography'', the ''
Dictionary of National Biography The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...
'' (where he was one of only five members of the Metaphysical Society who did not appear in it) and the later ''
Oxford Dictionary of National Biography The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...
''. However other researchers have on occasion drawn attention to the Boulton's achievements, pointed to in 1911 in Britain's leading aviation magazine, ''Flight'' ("Two Interesting Patents"), and later by aviation historian C. H. Gibbs-Smith ("The First Aileron"). Boulton's flight control device, first described in his 1868 patent, "Aerial Locomotion, &c", was publicly praised by the pioneering U.S. aeronautical engineer
Charles Manly Charles Manly (May 13, 1795May 1, 1871) was a lawyer who served as the 31st governor of the U.S. state of North Carolina from 1849 to 1851. He was the last member of the Whig Party to hold the office. After one two-year term, Manly was defea ...
. While addressing the
Society of Automotive Engineers SAE International, formerly named the Society of Automotive Engineers, is a United States-based, globally active professional association and standards developing organization for engineering professionals in various industries. SAE Internatio ...
in 1916, Manly referred directly to Boulton's invention, telling his audience: In his lifetime Boulton was likely better noted for his membership in the eclectic
Metaphysical Society The Metaphysical Society was a famous British debating society, founded in 1869 by James Knowles, who acted as Secretary. Membership was by invitation only, and was exclusively male. Many of its members were prominent clergymen, philosophers, and ...
, a short-lived association (1869–1880) of some of Britain's most gifted
philosopher A philosopher is a person who practices or investigates philosophy. The term ''philosopher'' comes from the grc, φιλόσοφος, , translit=philosophos, meaning 'lover of wisdom'. The coining of the term has been attributed to the Greek th ...
s,
theologian Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...
s,
academic An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary education, secondary or tertiary education, tertiary higher education, higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membershi ...
s and political leaders, although " member of the Metaphysical Society knew less renown than M.P.W. Boulton". He was elected to the society in 1874. Nevertheless, the former and future
British Prime Minister The prime minister of the United Kingdom is the head of government of the United Kingdom. The prime minister advises the sovereign on the exercise of much of the royal prerogative, chairs the Cabinet and selects its ministers. As modern p ...
and society member William Gladstone, who chaired its 9 April 1878 meeting at the Grosvenor Hotel, read Boulton's philosophical
treatise A treatise is a formal and systematic written discourse on some subject, generally longer and treating it in greater depth than an essay, and more concerned with investigating or exposing the principles of the subject and its conclusions."Treat ...
''Has a Metaphysical Society Any Raison d'être?'' (Does a metaphysical society have any reason to exist?) to the assembled membership that evening. It included, in part: The work was described by Alan Brown as a "brilliant paper", ultimately leading to the beginning of the end of the Society, its "kiss of death". According to Catherine Hajdenko-Marshall, Boulton's paper argued that in free and open societies, "the plurality of ideas meant that debate was ssentiallyimpossible". But, apparently, despite its importance to the Society, Boulton may not have attended the reading of his own work.


Death and legacy

M. P. W. Boulton died in London on 30 June 1894 at age 73. This was soon noted by ''
The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...
'' which wrote in his obituary that he was: After Boulton's death his eldest son Matthew retained the Great Tew Estate until his own death, still single, in 1914, after which the estate fell into general disrepair, unused for a number of decades. Boulton's great-nephew Major Eustace Robb renovated the estate and lived there from 1952 until his demise in 1985.


Tribute

Boulton Peak is a mountain summit at the southeast side of
Curtiss Bay Curtiss Bay () is a bay about wide, indenting the west coast of Graham Land just north of the Chavdar Peninsula, and entered between Cape Sterneck and Cape Andreas on the Davis Coast. Its head is fed by Samodiva Glacier, Pirin Glacier and Tu ...
, about south of Cape Andreas in
Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean, it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest contine ...
. It was mapped from air photos taken between 1955–57 and named by the
UK Antarctic Place-Names Committee The UK Antarctic Place-Names Committee (or UK-APC) is a United Kingdom government committee, part of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, responsible for recommending names of geographical locations within the British Antarctic Territory (BAT) and ...
in 1960 to honour Boulton for his invention of the aileron.


Aeronautical works

In 1868, long before the advent of powered aircraft flight – and within a decade of the birth of both Orville and Wilbur Wright – Boulton patented the first
aileron An aileron (French for "little wing" or "fin") is a hinged flight control surface usually forming part of the trailing edge of each wing of a fixed-wing aircraft. Ailerons are used in pairs to control the aircraft in roll (or movement around ...
. The aileron system he created was to be actuated by either a hand-operated control (not illustrated on the patent's drawings) or by an automatic pendulum control device (depicted on the patent's drawing sheet), with the intended function of a single-axis autopilot. Boulton's inspiration for a lateral flight control device has been attributed to French Count Ferdinand Charles Honore Phillipe d'Esterno, whose detailed analysis of flapping and soaring bird flight, ''Du Vol des Oiseaux'' (On the flight of birds) was published as a pamphlet in 1864. Although Boulton's prescient aileron control system was fully functional, he, as did almost everyone of his era, lacked a detailed understanding of
aerodynamics Aerodynamics, from grc, ἀήρ ''aero'' (air) + grc, δυναμική (dynamics), is the study of the motion of air, particularly when affected by a solid object, such as an airplane wing. It involves topics covered in the field of fluid dyn ...
, and an airplane he designed never achieved flight. Ailerons are a key device for the lateral flight control of airplanes to enable their safe flight. They are still in almost universal use in the present day by civilian and military aircraft,Bullmer 2009, p. 20. and even on the most sophisticated jetliners. In 1873, five years after Boulton's aileron patent, the French military engineer and aircraft designer Charles Renard built and flew at St.-Eloi, near Arras, a small unmanned multi-wing glider incorporating ailerons (which he termed "winglets") on each side of its body, controlled by Boulton's pendulum control single-axis autopilot device with a design layout that closely matched the patent. Boulton's Letter's Patent specifications were sealed on 4 August 1868 and the complete patent was backdated to its application date of 5 February 1868. His British patent, the 392nd one completed in 1868, was issued more than 35 years before ailerons were 'reinvented' in France, and ailerons were later repatented in the United States by
Glenn Curtiss Glenn Hammond Curtiss (May 21, 1878 – July 23, 1930) was an American aviation and motorcycling pioneer, and a founder of the U.S. aircraft industry. He began his career as a bicycle racer and builder before moving on to motorcycles. As early ...
of the
Aerial Experiment Association The Aerial Experiment Association (AEA) was a Canadian-American aeronautical research group formed on 30 September 1907, under the leadership of Dr. Alexander Graham Bell. The AEA produced several different aircraft in quick succession, with eac ...
in about 1911. Boulton's 1868 patent became forgotten and lost from sight until the same time, a few years before they came into general use in 1915. Aviation historian C. H. Gibbs-Smith acknowledged Boulton's priority of invention, stating that if the 1868 patent had been revealed at the time of the Wright brothers' legal filings, they might not have been able to claim the priority of invention for the lateral control of flying machines. Although Boulton had described ailerons in 1864 and then patented them in 1868, no one is known to have used them in manned aircraft flight until
Robert Esnault-Pelterie Robert Albert Charles Esnault-Pelterie (8 November 1881 – 6 December 1957) was a French aircraft designer and spaceflight theorist. He is referred to as being one of the founders of modern rocketry and astronautics, along with the Russian Kons ...
's glider, 36 years later in 1904 (Renard's 1871 glider flights using pendulum controlled "winglets" were unmanned). Esnault-Pelterie, a French aeronautical engineer, built a Wright brothers-style
biplane A biplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with two main wings stacked one above the other. The first powered, controlled aeroplane to fly, the Wright Flyer, used a biplane wing arrangement, as did many aircraft in the early years of aviation. While ...
glider that year, which had first used their
wing warping Wing warping was an early system for lateral (roll) control of a fixed-wing aircraft. The technique, used and patented by the Wright brothers, consisted of a system of pulleys and cables to twist the trailing edges of the wings in opposite direc ...
design that he had also copied, but the glider's control in flight was found to be poor and was then changed over to ailerons, although another source states the changeover was due to his view that wing warping was structurally dangerous. The French journal ''
L'Aérophile ''L’Aérophile'' ("The Aerophile") was a French aviation magazine published from 1893 to 1947. It has been described as "the leading aeronautical journal of the world" around 1910. History and contents ''L’Aérophile'' was founded and ru ...
'' later published photos of Esnault-Pelterie's glider with its inter-wing ailerons in June 1905, and ailerons were then copied by other aircraft designers, with the interwing ailerons showing up on the final-flown revision of
Alberto Santos-Dumont Alberto Santos-Dumont (Santos Dumont, Minas Gerais, Palmira, 20 July 1873 — Guarujá, 23 July 1932) was a Brazilian aeronaut, sportsman, inventor, and one of the few people to have contributed significantly to the early development of both l ...
's 14-bis canard biplane on 12 November 1906, popularized by American pilot and aircraft designer
Glenn Curtiss Glenn Hammond Curtiss (May 21, 1878 – July 23, 1930) was an American aviation and motorcycling pioneer, and a founder of the U.S. aircraft industry. He began his career as a bicycle racer and builder before moving on to motorcycles. As early ...
with his ''Golden Flyer'' first self-designed aircraft in 1909, and entering widespread use by 1915. The Wrights, having vigorously fought others using any form of lateral flight control without the payment of onerous licensing fees to them, quietly changed their aircraft flight control systems from wing warping to ailerons at that time as well. It is unknown whether Esnault-Pelterie had seen Boulton's patent or reinvented ailerons independently. Gibbs-Smith later wrote in his 1960 opus, ''The Aeroplane: An Historical Survey of its Origins and Development'', that "Boulton invented a method of control identical with the modern aileron control system in 1868. Had it not been overlooked, the history of the practical aeroplane would have been radically different, since it was the problem of achieving lateral stability and control that plagued the Wrights,
Langley Langley may refer to: People * Langley (surname), a common English surname, including a list of notable people with the name * Dawn Langley Simmons (1922–2000), English author and biographer * Elizabeth Langley (born 1933), Canadian perfor ...
,
Curtiss Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company (1909 – 1929) was an American aircraft manufacturer originally founded by Glenn Hammond Curtiss and Augustus Moore Herring in Hammondsport, New York. After significant commercial success in its first decade ...
, and the whole "European School" 30–40 years later".


Patent description of ailerons

Boulton's description of his aileron control system was both clear and complete. It was "the first record we have of appreciation of the necessity for active lateral control as distinguished from assive lateral stability... With this invention of Boulton's we have the birth of the present-day three torque method of airborne control" as was praised by
Charles Manly Charles Manly (May 13, 1795May 1, 1871) was a lawyer who served as the 31st governor of the U.S. state of North Carolina from 1849 to 1851. He was the last member of the Whig Party to hold the office. After one two-year term, Manly was defea ...
. This was also endorsed by C. H. Gibbs-Smith. The patent's actual wording of ailerons reads (page 16, from line 8): Three figures (No. 5–7) of his aileron system were provided on the patent's attached drawing sheet, and on page 19 his explanation of the drawings reads (page 19, from line 22): Nowhere in the patent is there a description of mounting the ailerons on the trailing edges of the airplane's wings, where they would have induced
adverse yaw Adverse yaw is the natural and undesirable tendency for an aircraft to yaw in the opposite direction of a roll. It is caused by the difference in lift and drag of each wing. The effect can be greatly minimized with ailerons deliberately designed to ...
, but only "... on arms projecting from the vessel laterally". Indeed, the first ailerons used by
Robert Esnault-Pelterie Robert Albert Charles Esnault-Pelterie (8 November 1881 – 6 December 1957) was a French aircraft designer and spaceflight theorist. He is referred to as being one of the founders of modern rocketry and astronautics, along with the Russian Kons ...
in 1904 were mounted inter-wing, not on the trailing edges of the
glider Glider may refer to: Aircraft and transport Aircraft * Glider (aircraft), heavier-than-air aircraft primarily intended for unpowered flight ** Glider (sailplane), a rigid-winged glider aircraft with an undercarriage, used in the sport of glidin ...
's wings where they would have created unequal aileron drag.


Ongoing controversy

There are still conflicting claims today over who first invented the aileron. Other 19th century engineers and scientists, including Charles Renard,
Alphonse Pénaud Alphonse Pénaud (31 May 1850 – 22 October 1880), was a 19th-century French pioneer of aviation design and engineering. He was the originator of the use of twisted rubber to power model aircraft, and his 1871 model airplane, which he called ...
, and
Louis Mouillard Louis may refer to: * Louis (coin) * Louis (given name), origin and several individuals with this name * Louis (surname) * Louis (singer), Serbian singer * HMS ''Louis'', two ships of the Royal Navy See also Derived or associated terms * Lewis (d ...
, had described similar flight control surfaces, possibly serving as further inspiration to Boulton aside from Count d'Esterno. Another technique for lateral flight control,
wing warping Wing warping was an early system for lateral (roll) control of a fixed-wing aircraft. The technique, used and patented by the Wright brothers, consisted of a system of pulleys and cables to twist the trailing edges of the wings in opposite direc ...
, was also described or experimented with by several people including
Jean-Marie Le Bris Jean Marie Le Bris (March 25, 1817, Concarneau – February 17, 1872, Douarnenez) was a French aviator, born in Concarneau, Brittany who built two glider aircraft and performed at least one flight on board of his first machine in late 1856. His ...
, John Montgomery,
Clement Ader Clement or Clément may refer to: People * Clement (name), a given name and surname * Saint Clement (disambiguation)#People Places * Clément, French Guiana, a town * Clement, Missouri, U.S. * Clement Township, Michigan, U.S. Other uses * Ad ...
, Edson Gallaudet, D. D. Wells, and Hugo Mattullath. Aviation historian C. H. Gibbs-Smith wrote that the aileron was "... one of the most remarkable inventions ... of aeronautical history, which was immediately lost sight of". In an apparent oversight by the
U.S. Patent Office The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is an agency in the U.S. Department of Commerce that serves as the national patent office and trademark registration authority for the United States. The USPTO's headquarters are in Alexa ...
, the Wright brothers, on their second attempt, obtained a patent in 1906, not for the invention of an airplane (which had already existed for a number of decades in the form of gliders) but for the invention of a system of aerodynamic control that manipulated a flying machine's surfaces, including lateral flight control. They did so despite
rudder A rudder is a primary control surface used to steer a ship, boat, submarine, hovercraft, aircraft, or other vehicle that moves through a fluid medium (generally aircraft, air or watercraft, water). On an aircraft the rudder is used primarily to ...
s,
elevators An elevator or lift is a cable-assisted, hydraulic cylinder-assisted, or roller-track assisted machine that vertically transports people or freight between floors, levels, or decks of a building, vessel, or other structure. They are ...
and
aileron An aileron (French for "little wing" or "fin") is a hinged flight control surface usually forming part of the trailing edge of each wing of a fixed-wing aircraft. Ailerons are used in pairs to control the aircraft in roll (or movement around ...
s having been invented long before their efforts began, and then aggressively sued other aircraft builders worldwide for failure to pay them licensing royalties on the basis of the lateral flight control described in their expansive 1906 patent. Irrespective of such controversies it was Boulton, indisputably, who was the first to patent ailerons in 1868. The ailerons used by Esnault-Pelterie in 1904 followed Boulton's concept, although it is unknown whether he had studied the 1868 work, or if he had reinvented them independently.


Other aeronautical, gas turbine and engine design research

In 1864 Boulton looked at the problems of combustion at constant pressure, in connection with the operation of an industrial gas turbine. His British patent, No. 1636 of 1864, contains points of interest. He realized that the high velocity of the gas jet exiting his combustion chamber nozzle offered a practical difficulty, and proposed to remedy this by the use of successive induced jets of increasing volume and consequently lower velocity. This was shown in his drawing, with gases being delivered through collinear nozzles of increasing diameter, with the outer nozzles operating at increased gas volumes with reduced velocities, similar to the exhaust of a high-bypass
turbofan The turbofan or fanjet is a type of airbreathing jet engine that is widely used in aircraft engine, aircraft propulsion. The word "turbofan" is a portmanteau of "turbine" and "fan": the ''turbo'' portion refers to a gas turbine engine which ac ...
jet engine A jet engine is a type of reaction engine discharging a fast-moving jet of heated gas (usually air) that generates thrust by jet propulsion. While this broad definition can include rocket, Pump-jet, water jet, and hybrid propulsion, the term ...
. Another method proposed by Boulton for maintaining combustion at constant pressure was shown with gas burned in an inverted chamber under water, the products of combustion passing up through the water between the baffle plates and the mixed gases and steam being later delivered to a turbine. He went on to file a number of patents related to his gas turbine research (see patents). Boulton also attempted to build an
ornithopter An ornithopter (from Greek ''ornis, ornith-'' "bird" and ''pteron'' "wing") is an aircraft that flies by flapping its wings. Designers sought to imitate the flapping-wing flight of birds, bats, and insects. Though machines may differ in form, th ...
, an aircraft which would create lift by the movement of its articulating wings. A manned ornithopter was later created in 2006 when teams at the University of Toronto Institute for Aerospace Studies (UTIAS) achieved a working design with large flapping wing areas. With assist from a jet engine it only flew for about 300 meters on its only flight.


Family connection to other aviation works

Besides Boulton's invention of a primary flight control, the aileron, the family name may also be associated with the well known British firm that provided wartime aircraft production as
Boulton Paul Aircraft Boulton Paul Aircraft Ltd was a British aircraft manufacturer that was incorporated in 1934, although its origins in aircraft manufacturing began earlier in 1914, and lasted until 1961. The company mainly built and modified aircraft under co ...
. Boulton Paul Aircraft Ltd was a British aircraft manufacturer that was created in 1934, although its start in aircraft manufacturing began earlier in 1914, and lasted until 1961. The company mainly built and modified aircraft under contract to other manufacturers, but had a few notable designs of its own, such as the
Boulton Paul Defiant The Boulton Paul Defiant is a British interceptor aircraft that served with the Royal Air Force (RAF) during World War II. The Defiant was designed and built by Boulton Paul Aircraft as a "turret fighter", without any fixed forward-firing guns ...
. The company's origins date back to a
Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. Norwich is by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. As the seat of the See of Norwich, with ...
ironmonger Ironmongery originally referred, first, to the manufacture of iron goods and, second, to the place of sale of such items for domestic rather than industrial use. In both contexts, the term has expanded to include items made of steel, aluminium ...
's shop founded in 1797. William Staples Boulton joined the Norfolk ironworks firm of Moore & Barnard in 1844. By 1870 William had been elevated to a partner and the firm was renamed to Barnard & Boulton, later becoming
Boulton & Paul Ltd Boulton & Paul Ltd was a British general manufacturer from Norwich, England that became involved in aircraft manufacture. Jeld Wen Inc. bought Boulton & Paul (along with another joinery company John Carr) from the Rugby Group plc in 1999 to ...
. The latter firm began its construction engineering division in 1905. In the early 1900s, Boulton & Paul became a successful general manufacturing firm, also starting an aircraft production operation in 1914–1915. The aircraft manufacturing division was spun off from the main construction business in 1934, subsequently moving to
Wolverhampton Wolverhampton () is a city, metropolitan borough and administrative centre in the West Midlands, England. The population size has increased by 5.7%, from around 249,500 in 2011 to 263,700 in 2021. People from the city are called "Wulfrunian ...
.


Published works


Works under his name

Boulton's known works under his name include:Inman 1991, p. 417. * ''Essay on the Decline and Fall of the Persian Empire'' (awarded the Eton Prize, 1839), 1839. * "Epigrammata numismate annuo dignata" in ''Prolusiones Academicae praemiis annuiis dignatae et in Curia Cantabrigiensi recitatae Comitiis Maximis'', 1828–1842, 15 parts, Joannes Smith and J. C. Parker: Cantabrigae, 1828–42, part for 1841. * ''Remarks on Some Evidence Recently Communicated to the Photographic Society'', 1863. * ''Remarks Concerning Certain Photographs Supposed to be of Early Date'', London: Bradbury and Evans, 1864. * ''Remarks Concerning Certain Pictures Supposed to be Photographs of Early Date'' (revised), London; Bradbury and Evans, 1865. * ''Translations of Book I of Homer's Iliad; also passages from Virgil, Aristophanes, Moschus, and Catullus'' (in verse), London:
Chapman and Hall Chapman & Hall is an imprint owned by CRC Press, originally founded as a British publishing house in London in the first half of the 19th century by Edward Chapman and William Hall. Chapman & Hall were publishers for Charles Dickens (from 1840 ...
, 1875. * ''Translation of the Sixth Book of Virgil's Aeneid and Book VIII, lines 652–713'' (in verse), London:
Chapman and Hall Chapman & Hall is an imprint owned by CRC Press, originally founded as a British publishing house in London in the first half of the 19th century by Edward Chapman and William Hall. Chapman & Hall were publishers for Charles Dickens (from 1840 ...
, 1877. * ''Has a Metaphysical Society Any Raison d'être?'' (Does a metaphysical society have any reason to exist? —a paper read before the
Metaphysical Society The Metaphysical Society was a famous British debating society, founded in 1869 by James Knowles, who acted as Secretary. Membership was by invitation only, and was exclusively male. Many of its members were prominent clergymen, philosophers, and ...
), London, 1878. * ''Songs from Heine and other Pieces'' (translated into English Verse by M. P. W. Boulton), 1880. * ''Considerations on the Subject of Solar Heat'', London:
Chapman and Hall Chapman & Hall is an imprint owned by CRC Press, originally founded as a British publishing house in London in the first half of the 19th century by Edward Chapman and William Hall. Chapman & Hall were publishers for Charles Dickens (from 1840 ...
, 1890. * ''On Solar or Stellar Heat'', London:
Chapman and Hall Chapman & Hall is an imprint owned by CRC Press, originally founded as a British publishing house in London in the first half of the 19th century by Edward Chapman and William Hall. Chapman & Hall were publishers for Charles Dickens (from 1840 ...
, 1891.


Pseudonymous works

Although no definitive proof is known to exist that Boulton was also published under the pen name M. P. W. Bolton, researcher and author Alan Brown wrote in ''The Metaphysical Society: Victorian Minds in Crisis, 1869–1880'', that Boulton was also sometimes spelt as 'Bolton'. Brown was perhaps convinced of that since no biographical information exists for any 'M. P. W. Bolton', Bolton was, in fact, Boulton's
pseudonymous A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name (orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individua ...
pen name. Somewhat intriguingly, Boulton's younger brother, Montagu Boulton (1824–1849), was admitted to Cambridge University's
Inner Temple The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, commonly known as the Inner Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court and is a professional associations for barristers and judges. To be called to the Bar and practise as a barrister in England and Wal ...
(a law society) as "Matthew Bolton" in October 1844. Additionally, M. P. W.'s distant ancestors' surnames omitted the'' 'u, from their spelling. That included John Bolton of Lichfield, Staffordshire, who is believed descended from, possibly a grandson of Robert Bolton (1572–1631), rector of Broughton, Northamptonshire. Under the alternate 'Bolton' spelling the
British Museum The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...
lists several philosophical works (all published by
Chapman & Hall Chapman & Hall is an imprint owned by CRC Press, originally founded as a British publishing house in London in the first half of the 19th century by Edward Chapman and William Hall. Chapman & Hall were publishers for Charles Dickens (from 1840 ...
, which had also published most of Boulton's works), including: * ''Examination of the Principles of the Scoto-Oxonian'' (1861); * ''Reply to a critique in the Saturday review on the Scoto-Oxonian philosophy'' (1862); * ''Letter to T. Collyns Simon, Esq., Author of The Philosophical Answer to Essays and Reviews'' (1863); * ''Inquisitio Philosophica: An Examination of the Principles of Kant and Hamilton'' (1866); * ''Examination of the Principles of the Scoto-Oxonian Philosophy: with Replies to Objectors'' (1869). Several of the Bolton writings fiercely attacked the theological positions expounded by Scottish philosopher Sir William Hamilton and the metaphysician
Henry Longueville Mansel Henry Longueville Mansel (6 October 1820 – 30 July 1871) was an English philosopher and ecclesiastic. Life He was born at Cosgrove, Northamptonshire (where his father, also Henry Longueville Mansel, fourth son of General John Mansel, was ...
, who both argued that God was "infinite" and "absolute". One possible reason for the alternate pen name in confronting authority figures may then have been that of
deniability Plausible deniability is the ability of people, typically senior officials in a formal or informal chain of command, to deny knowledge of or responsibility for any damnable actions committed by members of their organizational hierarchy. They may ...
. An edition of
John Stuart Mill John Stuart Mill (20 May 1806 – 7 May 1873) was an English philosopher, political economist, Member of Parliament (MP) and civil servant. One of the most influential thinkers in the history of classical liberalism, he contributed widely to ...
's ''Examination of Sir William Hamilton's Philosophy'' later led the English political radical
George Grote George Grote (; 17 November 1794 – 18 June 1871) was an English political radical and classical historian. He is now best known for his major work, the voluminous ''History of Greece''. Early life George Grote was born at Clay Hill near B ...
to examine Bolton's ''Inquisitio Philosophica'', and prompted Mill to write that its author "is a scholar, well read in history of philosophy and.... howsthat he holds with the inductive school, both in their philosophy and in its consequences". Mills thought the work's author an "acute thinker" and ''Inquisitio'' an "able work". Kinzer's examination of the same work led him to a firmer belief that Bolton and Boulton were also one and the same. Additionally, a letter by an M. P. W. Bolton is archived at
Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by Henry VIII, King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any college at either Cambridge ...
, although a biographical work listing all of the university's known students has no record of any such person, only that of Boulton. Examination of other letters written by both Bolton and Boulton also hold that their handwriting scripts closely resemble each other.


Patents

Subject to various international agreements, patents filed in one country were normally also valid in the other contracting states which participated in them. Boulton's patents include (UK, unless otherwise specified):


See also

*
Wright brothers patent war The Wright brothers patent war centers on the patent they received for their method of airplane flight control. The Wright brothers were two Americans who are widely credited with inventing and building the world's first flyable airplane and mak ...


References

Footnotes Citations Bibliography * Bullmer, Joe.
''The WRight Story: The True Story of the Wright Brothers' Contribution to Early Aviation''
CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, , , 2009. * * Harrison, James P
''Mastering the Sky: A History of Aviation from Ancient Times to the Present''
New York: Sarpedon, 1996, a Capo Press, 2000, , * Inman, Billie Andrew
Pater's Letters at the Pierpont Morgan Library
''English Literature in Transition, 1880–1920'', Vol. 34, No. 4, 1991, pp. 407–417, DOI:10.1353/elt.2010.2347. * Newton, William
''Newton's London Journal of Arts and Sciences (and repertory of patent inventions) Volume XXI'': being a record of the progress of invention as applied to the arts
London: Newton & Sons, at The Office for Patents, 66 Chancery Lane, 1865. * Parkin, John H
''Bell and Baldwin: Their Development of Aerodromes and Hydrodromes at Baddeck, Nova Scotia''
Toronto:
University of Toronto Press The University of Toronto Press is a Canadian university press founded in 1901. Although it was founded in 1901, the press did not actually publish any books until 1911. The press originally printed only examination books and the university calen ...
, 1964. * * * Woodcroft, B
''Chronological Index of Patents Applied for and Patents Granted: For the Year 1868''
B. Woodcroft, Clerk of the Commissioners of Patents, Office of the Commissioners of Patents for Inventions (Patent office), 1869'


Further reading

* Kinzer, Bruce. "In search of M.P.W. Bolton", ''Notes and Queries'', 26 August 1979, pp. 310–313. * Lee, S. ''Dictionary of National Biography: errata'', Macmillan, 1904.


External links

*
Matthew Boulton Papers at the Birmingham Archives and Heritage Service
"On permanent loan from the Birmingham Assay Office, the Matthew Boulton Papers are the private and business records of Boulton and his successors."
Remarks concerning certain photographs supposed to be of early date (1864)
by M. P. W. Boulton, viewable online at Archive.org
Translation of the Sixth Book of Virgil's ''Eneid'' (1877)
by M. P. W. Boulton, viewable online at Archive.org
Homer's ''Iliad'': Translation of Book I; Also Passages from Virgil (1875)
by M. P. W. Boulton, viewable online at Archive.org
Examination of the principles of the Scoto-Oxonian philosophy (1861)
by M. P. W. Bolton, viewable online at Archive.org {{DEFAULTSORT:Boulton, Matthew Piers Watt 19th-century English mathematicians People educated at Eton College Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge Aeronautics 19th-century English philosophers English aerospace engineers Aviation history of the United Kingdom 19th-century British inventors Metaphysicians 1820 births 1894 deaths People of the Industrial Revolution Classicism High Sheriffs of Oxfordshire People from Staffordshire 19th-century British philosophers